[bashinator]

File IO can be vastly improved by excluding the WSL OS directory from Windows Defender real-time protection. Here's a gist that has powershell and GUI instructions for accomplishing this: https://gist.github.com/noelbundick/9c804a710eb76e1d6a234b14...

[pengwinhayden]

This is possible but not recommended unless you are very cautious.

Windows Defender protects from Windows malware entering via WSL and Linux malware as well.

For example Windows Defender has caught comprimised npm modules inside WSL.

[bashinator]

That is really interesting to hear! I am quite cautious about what I do in any environment, of course. How would you say WSL without windows defender compares (security-wise) with say, running equivalent operations with homebrew or macports in OS X? Or just in vanilla bare-metal linux?

[naveen99]

There aren’t that many malware that are worse than antivirus.

What I don’t understand is why antivirus has to second guess the user.